Ayashi no Kijutsu
by amichan2
Summary: *COMPLETE* History of Atlantis. Crossover w/ Escaflowne. Sequel up now.
1. one: the secret of atlantis

_EDIT January 25th, 2003 - Here's the final edited novel version of Ayashi no Kijutsu. I'll be uploading these chapter by chapter over the next week or so. I don't think this will ever be changed or edited again, so here be final version. You can download the ENTIRE THING edited and novel formatted at the official site as long as other author's notes, which will also be uploaded later onto the end. Enjoy._

**Chapter One: The Secret of Atlantis**

* * *

_This chapter is dedicated to the late Jonathon. Thanks for everything _

* * *

It happened seven months after the end of the Celestial Project on Earth, and fourteen moons after the Great War on Gaea. In the garden outside a dance dojo, a woman named Suzumi was drinking in the fresh air. She had been trying to meditate, but found it impossible to concentrate on clearing her mind. And now she paced in her garden, not knowing what she could possibly do next. Nevertheless, as she deeply breathed in the clear morning air, she felt content. Everything was over now, and the Mikage tradition of killing girls that could possibly be Tennyo has ended. Her mind feels oddly blank now that this isnt on her mind anymore.  
  
She was bending down to smooth out a crease in her kimono when the girl passed, jogging. Normally, she would not have paid much attention to just any girl running by in a t-shirt and jogging shorts. But this girl... This girl attracted her somehow.  
  
"Hello," she called out to the girl after a moment of hesitation. The girl turned around and smiled uncertainly. She was pretty, although her soft brown hair gives an overall boyish look to it. As she ran, she obviously remembered something to her liking, and a brilliant smile lit up sparkly and energetic green eyes. But this was not what sent Suzumi a shock of surprise. What surprised her was that, as this girl smiled, her life force flared noticably brighter---her aura was a pinkish purple.  
  
"Hello," the girl was saying politely, "did you say something to me?"  
  
"Um, yes," Suzumi replied hesitantly, "are you running for some training or something of that sort?"  
  
"Yes. For track. At school," the girl flashed another smile, "There's a huge competition tomorrow and I want to be in shape."  
  
"Good luck then," the girl smiled again. Her aura flared again. There was no mistake about it now.  
  
"Thank you very much," the girl turned around and started to leave.  
  
"Wait!" Suzumi called out frantically. The girl was slipping away fast now, "What's your name?"  
  
"Kanzaki," The girl replied with a puzzled look on her face after a pause. "Kanzaki Hitomi."

* * *

Aya turned the phone off, looking puzzled. How could there be a C-Genoma left in this area? Or more importantly, how could there be one who has not died with the others or like Shuro had died? But Suzumi would not have called her and told her about if it she was not completely positive.  
  
Aya set the cordless down and walked into the bedroom she shared with Touya and her child Aki. There, she found a very gentle Touya setting their sleeping son down in his crib. Aya hid a knowing smile, but couldn't help worrying as she noticed that Touya looked a little weaker than a week ago. She had started noticing his weakening a little before Aki was born. And she feared the worst.  
  
She could not help but wonder if he would die soon. He had said "a year, maybe two." But even he wasn't sure. What if he died earlier than expected? She knew that he would leave her sooner or later. But she still selfishly wished he would never do so.  
  
But for now, she would just have go on with life and see what would happen, because "today?is what's the most important. She would worry about tomorrow when that came.  
  
"Touya," she said softly so the baby would not wake, and didn't wait for an answer before she continued, "Suzumi wants us to talk to someone---she found another C-Genoma."

* * *

"I'm home!" Yuuhi dropped his bag in his room with a thud and said this in his best irritated voice.  
  
"Ah! Yuuhi-kun!" Kyuu-san's face popped in his sliding door with that trademark smile, "How was school?"  
  
"Eh? Don't treat me like a little school-kid! I'm not in high school anymore."  
  
"But," Kyuu-san said smilingly, "you're in college. And college is school."  
  
"Oh shut up," Yuuhi muttered, "Stop smiling like that. Your face is scaring me again."  
  
"That's why," Suzumi said in a calm voice, "You shouldn't provoke Kyuu-san."  
  
"Eh? 'Sis? When'd you come in?"  
  
"Never mind that," Suzumi waved his question off impatiently, "I think I have another job for you!" She grinned cheerfully with an equally cheerful victory sign.  
  
"... I hope it's not another Tennyo-protecting job," he rubbed the back of his head, as if remembering every moment of pain during that "job.?br>   
"It was not that bad, was it? I'm sure it'll be fun this time around, too!" Kyuu-san said in a still more smilingly way.  
  
"Argh!"

* * *

"My Lord!" a knight scurried to Van's feet, "We found something!"  
  
"Eh?" Van sighed impatiently. His goal was to rebuild Fanelia. But these knights who knew nothing but to grovel at his feet were absolutely no help to his cause. He didn't want to be cruel or mean, but he was sure that he'd run out of patience. And soon.  
  
"People, Van-sama," another knight added, "Strange people."   
  
"Is that what it's about then?" Van sighed again. These people always making a big deal out of nothing.   
  
"People," an older knight said urgently, "who claim to be your kin! It's preposterous!"   
  
"It wouldn't be impossible after all," Van dismissed the doubt immediately, "My mother was from unknown origins."   
  
"Ahem," an the man coughed, "The advisors you have in court, Van-sama," he advised, "would not like to hear you say that."  
  
"..." Van said audibly.  
  
"Shall we bring them in?"  
  
Van sighed _again_, "Very well," he said, and mounted his horse. Hopefully, this would not take long. On the other hand?he might meet his relatives?

* * *

Hitomi turned off the shower, dried herself, pulled on some loose clothes, then started to dry her hair. This morning's run was uneventful as it usually is, or rather, as it's _supposed_ to always be. Who was that woman on Friday anyways? Hitomi sighed. She hadn't done too well at the track meet. She had ended up only third out of the school. And she was lower still on the list among all the other schools. However, throughout the whole weekend she couldn't help wondering who the woman she had met was and why she had been so interested in Hitomi.  
  
She glanced at the clock briefly. 9:21 am. She should start studying. College entrance exams will come up in less than a year. So she settled down at her desk with that thought and began studying Calculus, although somewhat reluctantly.  
  
Before long, it was 10 am. But it was at 10:07 that the doorbell rang. Grumbling her impatience, Hitomi opened the door, irritated. There she saw a redheaded man---he was tall and holding a small baby---and a blond woman who could not have been very much older than Hitomi herself.  
  
"Can I help you?"  
  
"Erm," the blond seemed hesitant.  
  
"Yes. You can," the man interrupted unblinkingly. He looked tired, "We were looking for a Hitomi Kanzaki?"  
  
"That's me," she forced a cheerful smile onto her tired face.  
  
"A friend of ours," the man said, caressing the baby's soft hair absently. The baby cooed, and Hitomi thought he looked adorable, "informed us of a very interesting case. She wanted us to talk to a girl---you."

* * *

"My lord," an old woman kneeled before Van, "It's an honor and pleasure to have met you at last."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Why," the woman looked up and stared at him unblinkingly, "Everyone has heard of the great Van-sama, who was essential in the winning of the Great War. Surely, no other Draconian has ever done a feat this great."  
  
"Except for, perhaps," a young girl within these people's group laughed and interrupted the woman, "those who created this planet."  
  
"Non-sense," a soldier sneered quietly, but shut up when Van gave him A Look.  
  
"Van-sama," the woman said, "your mother," her voice shook, "they say... she died because she had dared married a human. Is it... true?"  
  
"No," Van said coldly, "and of course," he added, "you would also be of her kin---and mine."  
  
"Yes, Van-sama," the woman said, "we had wanted to see you for so long."  
  
"Oh?" Van merely looked amused, and once again one must notice how much he's changed from his older self. He was so impatient and always acted before thinking. The past year had added not only age but also wisdom to him. "I would like to believe you," he commented, "But I would need... proof."  
  
The woman looked uncertain, and turned to raise an inquiring eyebrow at an old man who seemed to be the leader of this small clan, "Yes. My lord."  
  
And indeed, gray wings sprouted from her back gracefully, as everyone gasped and stared.  
  
"All right. I believe you then. But?they're," Van commented, "so... frail. So gray."  
  
"Ah," the woman said, "I'm afraid age has gotten to me, of course."  
  
And Van heaved a sigh heavily and stepped down from his horse, taking the woman's hands, "Please," he said, "would you and your clan," he asked urgently, "join me at my castle. So that I may learn of the history, the culture, and everything else about our race that I was not taught?"  
  
"Of course we would," she smiled in a motherly way, "it's what we came to you for. We looked for you so that you may know of these things, my child."  
  
Van gave a tired smile and nodded his thanks silently, and proceeded to arrange their transportation to the castle.

* * *

"I'm sorry to just burst in like this," the blond woman said, taking the baby from the man's arms, "But our friend Suzumi informed us of a girl who was jogging by her place two days ago."  
  
"Would that woman," Hitomi asked curiously, "happen to have really pretty gray eyes, straight purple hair, and perhaps wear a pretty kimono?"  
  
"That would be her," Aya replied nonchalantly.   
  
"Let us," the man said, "begin by introducing ourselves. My name is Touya, from 'ten' and 'night.' But that's part of the story we want to tell you."  
  
"My name," the woman smiled warmly, "is Aya Mikage. And this is our son, Aki Mikage, named after my deceased twin brother. But then, that's also part of the story."  
  
"I've heard of," Hitomi said thoughtfully, "of a family also called the Mikage. I read a report on it---The Celestial Project. You wouldn't happen to be..."  
  
"Yes. I was, in fact, on of the key characters, if I do say so myself."  
  
The truth was, Hitomi didn't just "read a report on it." She had studied into it deeply, and was shocked to find that there was a race called the Tennyo---a race other than the Draconian. And she was really kind of curious about whether there was any connection between the two or not.  
  
"You aren't," Hitomi backed away a little, "the host of... Ceres... are you?"  
  
"I was," Aya said in a suggestive tone, "I'm just kidding. I won't hurt you. I can't, even if I wanted to. Not now. I _was_ the host of Ceres until she achieved her complete form and left us."  
  
"Oh," Hitomi whispered in a small tone. This was the woman who had single-handedly brought down the Mikage family. This was also the single survivor, other than her mother, of the Mikage family line. Moreover, this was the woman who had shown the most powerful and unusual telepathic powers in recorded history.  
  
"We were told," Aya continued, "of a girl who showed a strong aura."  
  
"Me, I suppose." Hitomi sighed, "Come in. This will take a while, don't you think?"  
  
"Forgive us for intruding," the red-headed man murmured just barely audibly as he stepped in, taking off his shoes.

* * *

"You said something about the Draconians creating Gaea," Van noted.  
  
"Yes," the old man sighed, "But it's a long story," he warned. "Since you're king, you might not have time to listen to all of it."  
  
"Continue. I'm listening."  
  
"Long ago---many, many years ago---our ancestors lived in a different world. The Mystical Moon was ruled by them. They had been the most advanced people on that planet for many years. They had grown proud. They had, in fact, built a great empire, and established their own structures in many places of that world."  
  
"These structures made up a machine. A machine that could predict the future so that they can avoid bad happenings. But I hear," he said grimly, "that another variation of this machine was created---the Fate Machine. This one lets one _control_ fate."   
  
"We destroyed that," Van commented.   
  
"Just as well," the old man sighed, "Because that machine helped them predict the future. They were still unable to escape their fate. Even if it was one they foresaw. In the end, it destroyed them. We learned a lesson. We know not to become so proud. In the beginnings of the empire, law was just and all were fair. But we grew proud and stupid. We over-ruled the original laws and created our own---none. And in the end, a great catastrophe occurred. The Cataclysm. The world was mostly destroyed, but the kami let some live. Some of those people stayed, and some used their powers---their Atlantean ones----to create a new planet. The reason Gaea is so dependant on will power is because it was created by a group of people's wills. And those humans stayed on Earth. No real Draconian remained on Earth. Those of us---marked by our wings---came here. There are only humans on Earth. And...." he paused, "other creatures."  
  
"We know that these things are accurate, because we have learned a lesson from all this, so we have recorded them down and engraved them in our minds deeply."

* * *

"So you see," Aya finished, "Suzumi must've confused you when she talked to you. She was surprised. Really. You are, Kanzaki-san, a Tennyo."  
  
"I see," Hitomi sighed, "I've wondered before whether I might be a heavenly maiden. But I ruled that out because I would've been found by the Mikage long before now, wouldn't I?"  
  
"Well," Aya said slowly, "They conducted the medical plot about fifteen months ago..."  
  
"Fifteen!" Hitomi gasped, "But---I wasn't _here_ fifteen months ago. I was... gone... for three months!"  
  
"Gone?" Touya raised an inquisitive eyebrow.  
  
"I... I was in another place..." Hitomi bit her lip, "But if it's you, I... I suppose I can tell you."  
  
Aya looked inquiringly, "If it's me?"  
  
"Because... maybe you can... ease the confusion in my mind a little, I guess," Hitomi looked off distantly, "I never thought that there would be other heavenly beings..."  
  
"Other heavenly beings? You mean..."


	2. two: uncovering the past

- Amichan - kurisutarusakura@hotmail.com - http://www.geocities.com/thecrazyfangirl/ -   
  
Notes and copyright information are at the end.  
  
_This chapter is dedicated to Sherry (for being Sherry and doing all she did for me as well as type up stuff for me), Richard (for encouraging me all the time even though I'm such a horrible friend), Johnny (for trying to make me feel better at times and for being strange and amusing me), and Edwin (yes you, Edwin, for being an awesome friend even though you don't admit it nor want to be a good friend to me). _

_ the night falls  
and the stars fade  
as the epic begins  
and the story is told  
  
of how the two worlds  
shall come together  
one, undivided  
forever in peace  
  
of the two fated ones  
with faith and courage  
friends and allies  
and their destinies  
_

* * *

  
Fate played its part. A chanced meeting between Hitomi and Suzumi stirs up the past, while, at the same time, Van discovers other lost Draconians who told him about the destruction of the first civilization on Earth. The secret of the creation of Gaea and the races involved is about to be uncovered.   
  
And this is how that uncovering came about....  
  
AYASHI NO KIJUTSU  
(Eerie Magic)  
Chapter Two: Uncovering the Past  
  
"Ah," Aya gasped in response to her cell phone ringing, "please wait a moment," she said to Hitomi.   
  
"Hello?" a familiar voice was heard over the phone, "Aya?"  
  
"Yuuhi!" Aya gasped in pleasant surprise, "How are you?"  
  
"Why," Yuuhi muttered in annoyance, "did 'nee-san give me yet another one of those 'Tennyo Protecting Bands?'"  
  
"..." Aya sweat dropped, "Erm..."

---  
  
_The birds sing to the empty sky...  
The seas turn slowly...  
The past begins to unfold...  
The sky turns dark..._  
  
---  
  
"There was another race---a race of women, perfect and smart," the old Draconian continued, "No one ever told us what connection there was between those women and the old empire, but I have a feeling that they had something to do with the destruction..."   
  
---  
  
_A chapter is opened...  
A page is turned...  
The story begins...  
The legacy resumes...  
  
_---  
  
Yuuhi hung up the phone in annoyance---Aya's feeble _erm_s and _er_s were not particularly helpful. There was something going on, and he wanted to know what.   
  
---  
  
_Stories unfolded  
Hidden things told  
Secrets revealed  
The clock turns_  
  
---  
  
"So..." Aya said slowly, "there's a whole other world also with heavenly beings?"  
  
"Yes," Hitomi nodded, "but they're a hated race. It took a war to get them to trust Van."   
  
"And you were stuck in the midst of all of it?"  
  
Hitomi laughed, "I guess you can put it that way. I wish the war never ended, in some strange selfish way."   
  
"I see," Aya muttered to herself.   
  
---  
  
_Don't know what to do  
Don't know where to go  
Don't know what to think  
Don't know what to feel_  
  
---  
  
"Hitomi," Van sighed, "I guess..." he broke off. He held the pendant in his hand, and prayed that everything was all right where Hitomi is, because he had a strange feeling that...  
  
---  
  
_Plans taking shape  
Obstacles forming  
Lives changed  
Things remembered   
  
_---  
  
Hitomi took a sip of coffee. She savored the bitterness for a moment, "Eh..." she added another half packet of sugar and a bit of cream.   
  
"Well," Aya tilted her head, "Do you have any idea what connection there might be?"  
  
"Mm..." Hitomi took another sip of coffee and tilted her head while she analyzed the flavor and studied the mug carefully, "Perhaps..." she stopped there and added another fourth of an ounce or so of coffee from the pot to her mug to balance out the flavor of the sugar and cream.   
  
"Perhaps...?"  
  
"I..." Hitomi paused thoughtfully, "I heard a rumor while at Gaea," she continued examining her cup slowly, "that Gaea itself was created by ancestors of Draconians, who were from Earth..."  
  
"So there might be some real connection from the past after all. I wish I can ask Ceres about it..."  
  
---  
  
_Don't know who I am  
My true identity  
Who I'm really am  
What I really am  
  
_---  
  
"Na!" Baby Aki cooed. He watched with giant round eyes every movement of his father.   
  
_Funny_, the baby thought, _the man who is always holding me_---Aki squirmed a little---_looks funny. The shape of his mouth looks funny. It looks all stiff and... and...  
  
_A vision of a man appeared to the baby suddenly, shining a light upon everything. To the baby, everything else suddenly faded away...  
  
"Aki..." the man with pretty eyes and a kind voice said, "your mother... watch over her like I never could..."  
  
_Who are **you**?  
  
_"I am... Aki Mikage... the Aki Mikage you were named after," blood-red ear rings seemed to shine brilliantly for a moment.   
  
---  
  
_What's purpose?  
What's destiny?  
Does fate choose  
Or do I choose my fate?  
  
_---  
  
Touya looked down at the suddenly silent baby, who seemed to be staring at something.   
  
"Aki?" he said softly, smoothing out the baby's hair.  
  
"A-" the baby struggled with the word, "A... Akeeeeehh."   
  
Aya sweat dropped, "..."  
  
Hitomi looked interested, "How old... is this baby?"  
  
"..." Touya stared, "Three months old."  
  
Silence followed.   
  
---  
  
_Don't know where I am  
Don't know who I am  
Don't know what is waiting  
Don't know anything  
  
_---  
  
"Looks like," the man murmured, "the time has finally come." He stood up. "Gentlemen," he began, "and ladies," he added, "the time has come finally. What we have foreseen for so many years has happened."  
  
Muttering was heard through out the room.   
  
"I would like to announce that," he paused, fingering his mustache, "the secret of Atlantis has finally begun its uncovering."  
  
The room went into a state of chaos.   
  
---  
  
_The planning has begun  
The outcome unknown  
But the goal is clear  
To make path for a new world  
  
_---  
  
"One day," the man said, pouring himself some wine, "_someone_ will find the connection between the Tennyo and the Draconian. And they will do something about it."  
  
"But what do you think would happen?" Van inquired.  
  
"I think..." the man looked downcast, "there will be great chaos."   
  
---  
  
_A new era has begun  
A new story  
A new life  
The action begins... **now  
  
**---  
  
**BAM  
  
** _"What...?" Aya looked startled and her eyes naturally looked towards the door that was just knocked down.   
  
Hitomi made a startled noise as the first man who entered loaded their handguns and pointed it at her.   
  
Touya pulled out a replica of his old knife from when he still had the mana, and sailed into the leading man who had his gun aimed at Hitomi. Aya kicked one of the men in the shin, while Hitomi quickly pulled out a metal folding chair and smashed it into one of the men. But they had the advantage of surprise, and soon, Hitomi found herself grabbing for the baby and failing miserably in trying to get a firm grip on the baby while the last intruder left snatched little Aki and pointed his gun at the baby.   
  
"Aki!" Aya slid to the floor in horror. But Touya didn't hesitate to drive the dagger into the arm of that man. The man, panicking, pressed the trigger, but it missed, barely, scraping the baby's left arm before it hit one of the folding chairs stacked against the wall, went halfway through the metal of the chair, and fell to the floor at last.   
  
Touya, still unhesitating, deftly drove his elbow into the man's stomach, sending the man down heavily onto the floor.   
  
"Aki!!" Aya rushed to pick up the baby, who Touya had failed to catch and had slid softly to the ground after the man had fallen and had finally let go of him.   
  
---  
  
_Don't know what is happening  
Don't know why it's happening  
Don't know how to stop it  
Don't know hot to end the pain  
  
_---  
  
"So they didn't manage to get the baby after all. We have to get the baby. He's the key to all this. I know it. He wasn't born without a purpose!" 

* * *

**A Word To the Reader About This Chapter  
  
**I'm so sorry! That was a random and short chapter. It was only 18 kb, as opposed to the 25 kb of the last chapter. But I really didn't want to include the next part of the story so soon. This is, I guess, the real beginning of the story, where stuff is actually happening. And you might wonder why Hitomi managed to act so well even when she's in shock. Well, Hitomi being Hitomi...   
**  
**Let us just say, she has been taught more than "Allen is not for me and is a pretty boy and Amano isn't for me either" on Gaea. IMHO, she has become much stronger than the girl she was at the beginning of the series... But in the movie, that's just... ugh...**  
  
**Anyhow, I hope you enjoyed that, at least. I was never good at writing stuff with action in it...**  
  
Author's Random Ramblings:  
**Waii! I'm so happy! Next weekend equals LAKE ARROWHEAD weekend! I'm so excited! I know it's just a small 3-day-and-two-nights trip, but I can't help it! The thought of smashing a wad of snow right smack into Jonathon's face is just too funny! I'm just kidding. And no, that's not the Jonathon who's dead.   
**  
**But it really will be fun! The forecast says that there'll be lots of snow so we get to have a snow fight like last year! Last year, I just sat around doing nothing and avoiding snow and cold. But this year, I have become stronger and braver! *cheers for Amy* Yeah! ^^ And they tell me that they'll drag me onto the dance floor no matter what at the dance this year. It's okay! I'm no longer afraid of dancing! Duahahaha!  
**  
**^^ After so many dances with the other Jonathon, _anyone_ would get over dance-phobia...  
**  
**Anyways, I can't _wait_ for next weekend. I already have 7 pages or so in my little organizer written full of "general things to bring," "mangas to bring," "CDs to bring," "people to remember to smack with snow," "people to call while at L.A.," "people to write while at L.A.," and "what clothes to wear when." I'm so obsessed, ne?   
**  
**Hahah. It's gonna be so interesting...

And...

The whole point of that rambling was to tell you that I won't be updating this fanfic or the site for the fanfic at all next weekend, since I'll be gone for almost all of it. I'll be gone from 1 pm Friday to around 6-10 pm on Sunday. And I'll be pretty dead when I come back. Ugh. The bus ride was dreadful last year. o.0 I almost _suffocated_, literally. I'm serious. There was a gas leak or something and we were delayed about 4 hours, and I almost coughed myself to death. I swear. I couldn't breathe and all...  
**  
**And Sherry tells me that I should be okay, as I managed not to die last time anyways...  
  
**Ramblings About the Process of Writing This Chapter...  
**The Process of Thinking and Writing was long and tedious. Ugh. I'm surprised I managed the Friday deadline. -_- Aiya. I hate being rushed, but I need some goal or another to keep me going. I hope this chapter doesn't actually seem boring and forced because I sort of rushed myself a bit with the writing. Other authors will know that being rushed seriously effect the quality of the output of emotions and the story itself...**  
  
Chapter Two Notes:  
**1. This chapter may seem boring, I know, but it connects the first and third chapters so that the connection between them could be sewn a little more solidly.   
2. The usual thanks go to Sherrychan, Sapphy, Silver, Pat, and everyone else.   
3. This chapter is dedicated to some wonderful people. To Sherry for supporting me all the time and being Sherry. To Richard for being a wonderful friend and sweet even though you probably don't feel like being understanding to me just now. To Johnny for trying to make me feel better at my most depressed times, and for being pathetic (which cheers me up ^^). And to Edwin, even though you might not agree, for being a friend and listening to my various ramblings with little complaint (note: I say _little_ complaint, because you DO complain).   
4. Thanks to everyone for reading! Please review/e-mail me!   
  
**Overall Notes:  
**1. I assumed that the original Escaflowne cast did not know about Gaia's origination, which was from the drama CD(s?), I believe.   
2. The layout, location, technology, history, and theory of Atlantis and its interaction with other places in the world is from The Atlantis Blue Print, a facinating book by Colin Wilson and Rand Flem-ath, even if I don't agree with their theories on the Christian aspects of their analysis. It's a great book.   
3. Escaflowne belong to... I don't remember---I think it was Bandai. But Ayashi no Ceres belongs to Watase-sensei.   



	3. three: to open the box

- Amichan - kurisutarusakura@hotmail.com - http://www.geocities.com/thecrazyfangirl/ -   
  
Notes and copyright information are at the end.  
  
_This chapter is for Joanna and her mother, who have supported my relationship with Jonathon for so long. I hope you guys feel better about his death. This is also for Jonathon's father, who, although he divorced Mrs. C a few months ago, has shown unending support for Jonathon and Joanna, and has continued to support me as well. _

_ the night falls  
and the stars fade  
as the epic begins  
and the story is told  
  
of how the two worlds  
shall come together  
one, undivided  
forever in peace  
  
of the two fated ones  
with faith and courage  
friends and allies  
and their destinies  
_

* * *

Hidden plans seemed to be unraveled bit by bit, as Hitomi, Touya, and Aya continue to talk about what has happened and their situation. An attack from unknown forces seems to affirm the thought that something important is to happen very soon. The story continues to reveal itself as secrets are being whispered in the air.  
  
And this is how one of the greatest secrets in humanity was uncovered...  
  
AYASHI NO KIJUTSU  
(Eerie Magic)  
Chapter Three: To Open the Box  
  
"Is he going to be okay?" Hitomi looked over Aya's shoulder to watch Aya and Touya dress the baby's wound carefully.   
  
"Yes," Aya sighed in relief, "it's just a scratch. And that guy didn't seem to have dropped the baby."  
  
"He didn't," Hitomi responded quickly, "the baby slid to the floor _after_ the guy went down."  
  
"It's all right then," Touya said, "As long as Aki is okay."   
  
"What if," Hitomi said carefully, "another attack happens soon?"  
  
"We'll be very careful from now on then," Aya replied, "We should be all right as long as Touya is here. But I must say, you were impressive too."   
  
Hitomi smiled wryly, "I suppose one would learn _something_ after going through a world war on a strange planet."   
  
"Let us," Touya interrupted, "leave the talking for later. We're going to have to clean up this mess before we talk. And figure out something to explain to your parents."  
  
The two girls eyed the blood, bullets, broken things, and most of all, the dead corpses lying on the ground, and realized that Touya was right.   
  
---  
  
_The destinies of two lives  
The story of two worlds  
The fate of three races  
Depend on this  
  
_---  
  
"Eh?" Yuuhi sweat dropped, "You need me for what?"  
  
"To help us with the cleaning up of something messy," the voice over the phone explained patiently.   
  
"..." Yuuhi sighed, "whatever it is, I guess I can help. Why can't you tell me now again?"  
  
"We're afraid that someone might be listening in or something."  
  
"... do people _really_ wire-tap people's phones to listen in on secrets?"  
  
"..." Aya sighed, "We have to be careful," she explained.  
  
"..." Yuuhi walked to his room, "I'll be coming in a few minutes. Give me the address."  
  
---  
  
_This story I tell you  
This song I sing  
This tale so sweet  
This future bright  
  
_---  
  
"The heritage of Draconians was always a simple one," the elderly woman told Van, "We try to keep with a simple life, even though some were still proud. Many people could never get over how sophisticated and advanced our technology used to be, and still held on to the belief that one day they will acquire once again that 'magic,' as they like to call it."  
  
"Then how do your group feel on this matter?" Van said.   
  
"We don't care about the technology," the woman said, "We know that we did not cause our destruction directly. We would never do so. We just want to know what caused it. And if someone intentionally did so, we want revenge."  
  
---   
  
_So I sing this melody  
This song I write  
A beautiful tune  
Will tell you the story  
  
_---  
  
"Sugoi!" Yuuhi sweat dropped, "Why is there so much..."  
  
"Blood?" Hitomi said sarcastically, with a bloodied cloth in her hand, "It's _so _hard to see the blood, isn't it?"  
  
"I'm sorry about it, Hitomi," Aya said, "If I could prevent it, I would've."  
  
"I was just kidding," Hitomi laughed, "Can you clean this cloth? It's dirty." She picked up a clean towel and continued cleaning blood off everything.   
  
"So..." Yuuhi sighed, "You can tell me what happened while I start cleaning. Where do you want me to start?"  
  
"Hm..." Aya looked around the room, "Start by picking up the bullet shells. We already," she counted off these things on her fingers, "burned the bodies at an empty field nearby---that took a while since we had to hide the bodies on the way there---and mopped up most of the blood. Now, we still have to figure out what to say to your mother, Kanzaki-san."   
  
---  
  
_One to begin it all  
One to End it  
Both to bring forth  
A magnificent union  
  
_---  
  
"The next attack we give them must be subtle and secretive. We must not allow them to track us down. We _have_ to maintain a low profile for this to work," he said to a squad of assassins, "Remember. Your job this time is not to kill, but to capture. The future of humanity depends on you. May the kami watch over you."   
  
---  
  
_The secrets of the past  
Now will be revealed_  
_Listen to the whispers  
How they tell the past_   
  
---  
  
"Moom," Hitomi sighed in exasperation, "I _have_ to go live with Aya-san and Touya-san! It's not safe for anyone for me to be here!"  
  
"No. I can understand what happened today, because your grandmother told me to expect such happenings sooner or later. It's a shock, yes, but it was not unexpected. But I won't allow my daughter to go live with other people---no offense to you, Mikage-san and Touya-san, as you insist that I call you---while I don't know what danger may be waiting for her!"  
  
"Mom," Hitomi held her mother's hands, "Please understand our situation. We need to figure this out and somehow solve whatever problem is here for us to discover. This is going to be dangerous. And I don't want to Otou-san, Onii-chan, and you to get hurt. Please?"  
  
Her mother sighed, and she didn't speak for a long time.  
  
"I guess I have no choice but to let you go, then," she said, at last.   
  
---  
  
_"Hurry! Hurry!  
The forces are gathering!"  
For what they did not know  
And could not tell who_   
  
---  
  
"Well," an amazingly beautiful woman said, "What was your intention behind this new plan of attack? What have the men been ordered to capture?"  
  
"The two heavenly maidens, of course."  
  
"...." the woman narrowed her eyes, "Treat them well."  
  
"Don't make me grow suspicious of where your true loyalties lie, Felicia," the man replied.  
  
"Of course my loyalties lie with man."  
  
"Yet you have Tennyo blood within you."  
  
"I have more human blood than heavenly blood."  
  
"True, I suppose. Well, just do your duty and let others take care of theirs."  
  
"Hai."  
  
---  
  
_Things are starting  
The era begins  
As the final fight  
For this universe adjourns_   
  
---  
  
"I hope you don't mind staying here with us."  
  
"Aya! Touya! You're here!" a pretty voice said.  
  
Hitomi turned around. It was that woman who had found her. The one who started everything.  
  
"Hello, Kanzaki-san," she smiled.  
  
"How do you do," it was not a question. Hitomi, for some reason, was a little intimidated by this woman, even though she knew this woman was on her side.   
  
"I'm glad you're staying with us again," Suzumi began.   
  
"Aya-san! Kiritari-sensei!"  
  
"Shouta!" Aya laughed happily and gave the young boy a big hug.  
  
"Kiritari-sensei is here, too!" Shouta smiled at Touya with respect.  
  
"I told you," Touya smiled too, "to call me Touya."  
  
"Haiii!" Shouta's eyes sparkled with joy, "Toouya-san!"  
  
"So," Yuuhi's familiar voice said, "You're back to stay."  
  
"It's best," Aya smiled simply, "that we all stay together at this important time. This may change everything for our family."   
  
"Eh, 'Nee-san," Yuuhi inquired, "Has Otou-san found any useful information on Atlantis yet?"   
  
"Yes," Suzumi replied, "But I haven't had time to look through it. Why don't you all settle down, and I can give you the information."  
  
"Better yet," a man appeared, "I'll tell them myself."  
  
"Otou-san!" Yuuhi yelled in shock.   
  
---  
  
_Remember now  
As it is important  
That you keep this a secret  
That no one should find it  
  
---  
  
_"So do you have any idea as to who might've caused the great destruction?" Van inquired.  
  
There was a long, awkward silence, "Yes," she said at last, "I firmly believe that... that the Tennyo caused our destruction."  
  
"The Tennyo? But your leader said---"  
  
"My leader doesn't believe that the Tennyo would do something like that. They were created to be perfect women. Perfect and loyal. But I do. I believe that something must've gone wrong. This is why I am still alive. I want to see their extinction. And I think I will. I can feel it in my bones. Something is going to happen."  
  
---  
  
_To open the box  
Secrets of history  
Magic of mystery  
Magic of life  
  
_---  
  
"There's a legendary object," Aogiri said, "that is said to have been created by the Atlanteans who had gone to heaven---which we think is what is known as Gaea right now." And he sat, silent for a while, wondering at the marvels of such creations.  
  
"What is the object, and why was it created?" Yuuhi felt stupid, but it had to be asked. His father was just sitting there.  
  
"It is," the man replied slowly, "a box. A simple wooden box, shielded from the weathering of time by magic. It is said to be placed in an alternate universe, where it is the only matter existing there. In it is the story of Atlantis. It tells the story of Atlantis so that people of the future may know their mistake. This is all the legend says. But over the years, this legend has ceased to exist."  
  
"Why is this box stored in someplace we can't get then? Is there a way to get this box?"  
  
"The box was placed there because of a prophecy. One that tells about someone special. This person can summon the box with a said prayer. And only this person can. And this person, with another, will do something great with the knowledge of the box."  
  
He sat quietly for another moment, and then continued, very quietly.   
  
"This box can only be summoned," he said in a low voice, and everyone leaned closer to hear, "by one who has Tennyo blood. One who has Tennyo blood but does not have the soul of their original Tennyo ancestor. One who doesn't have a Tennyo existence in them, awaken or asleep. Every C-Genoma has some sort of a sleeping or awakened Tennyo memory in their blood. Except," he lowered his voice still more, "one."  
  
"Aya!" Yuuhi whispered in shock fiercely.   
  
"Yes. Aya's Tennyo---Ceres---has already left her body! Aya is able to summon the box. More than that, this tells us something."  
  
"That she has a destiny that she must complete as the one of those two mentioned in the box!" Hitomi whispered in awe. 

* * *

**A Word To the Reader About This Chapter  
**Thanks a bunch for reading. And I must, of course, give credits to Richard, who gave me information on details from the Escaflowne TV series as I have not seen the whole thing quite yet. Thanks a lot. The legend of the box mentioned in here is not a true legend. I made it up. But the Atlanteans did seem like they WOULD do something like this, as they must've learned _something_ from all this destruction. **   
  
Author's Random Ramblings:  
**Ugh. My parents confiscated my anime collection, so I don't have my Ayashi episodes to refer to. So I might start making informational mistakes as I don't quite remember all the details from the original series. -_- Damn.   
  
Ah well. Speaking of that, I must remember to thank Edwin again---he agreed to hide my manga collection for a while at his house. *whew* I was kind of getting scared of the idea of hiding that stack of mangas from my parents. Muchos gracias (ugh. I'm getting brainwashed by my Spanish teacher. I'm **Asian** dammit.) Edwin.  
  
Ah well. Can't wait for Lake Arrowhead. I'll tell you all how that went (it is now February 16th, 10:12 p.m.).   
  
(A week later)  
  
Lake Arrowhead was fun. Lots of fun. I wanna go again but can't---I'm not gonna be in this orchestra next year. Oh well. *shrug*   
  
Ugh. Must finish the rest of this chapter.   
  
**Ramblings About the Process of Writing This Chapter...  
** ... I started early on this chapter due to a rush of ideas for little details and phrases I can use. I don't know. I guess watching all that Noir at once was very inspirational (Noir, by the way, was a good series. The ending was a bit sad though... but Mireille was so very right. "[The world is full of darkness], that's why we seek light," I think she said at the end...). I have been informed that the original Escaflowne cast _did_ know about Gaia's origination! Argh. Well... treat this like an alternate reality fanfic then. Because it now is. **   
**   
**Overall Notes:  
**1. The original Escaflowne series _did_ mention Atlantis. In fact, according to Richard, there were a few episodes dedicated to explaining it. This is an alternate reality fanfic---I don't think the past changes the current course of events so much unless it _caused_, directly or indirectly, what is happening now.   
2. The layout, location, technology, history, and theory of Atlantis and its interaction with other places in the world is from The Atlantis Blue Print, a facinating book by Colin Wilson and Rand Flem-ath, even if I don't agree with their theories on the Christian aspects of their analysis. It's a great book. I spent ages reading it for this fanfic.   
3. Escaflowne belong to... I don't remember---I think it was Bandai. But Ayashi no Ceres belongs to Watase-sensei.   



	4. four: summoning the magic

  
- Amichan - kurisutarusakura@hotmail.com - http://www.geocities.com/thecrazyfangirl/ -  
  
Notes and copyright information are at the end.  
  
_This chapter is for April, who deserves a guy a thousand times better than Daryl. _

_the night falls  
and the stars fade  
as the epic begins  
and the story is told  
  
of how the two worlds  
shall come together  
one, undivided  
forever in peace  
  
of the two fated ones  
with faith and courage  
friends and allies  
and their destinies  
_

* * *

**If you are reading this fanfic on fanfiction.net, note that this fanfic will be moved to the Ayashi no Ceres section from the Vision of Escaflowne section when the next chapter is uploaded. Thank-you.   
  
**Those involved move in with the Aogiris. Yuuhi's father joined the story once more as he researched Atlantean history for them to find a secret of the myth about a magical box hidden in an alternate reality, one that could only be summoned by one who has Tennyo blood but no "Tennyo soul."   
  
So it seems that Aya, whose Tennyo presence, Ceres, had left her already, is destined to summon the box.   
  
And this tells of how that magic was summoned...  
  
AYASHI NO KIJUTSU  
(Eerie Magic)  
Chapter Four: To Summon the Magic  
  
"To summon the box," Yuuhi's father continued, "one would say a prayer at sundown."   
  
"That's it?" Yuuhi said doubtfully, "Say a prayer at sundown?"   
  
"The legend says that it also requires a path of spirits to be near where the prayer is to be said."   
  
"What's that?" Hitomi wanted to know.  
  
"Remnants of spirits of the recently dead. They usually leave an almost non-existent portal between the natural and supernatural. Normal human beings leave almost no path. And these paths usually last no more than a month.   
  
"Normal humans? Does that mean that..."  
  
"Yes. Tennyo paths last for three months or more."  
  
---  
  
"They'll be going for the one place in Japan that has a Tennyo path. It's obvious. They'll want the box." the figure said emotionlessly. "It'll almost be," he allowed him a small smile, "too easy."   
  
"Yes," Felicia replied, "Shall I give the orders to the men then?"  
  
The shadow paused for a moment, "This time, I shall talk to the 'leader' of this operation myself."  
  
"You're not strong enough," Felicia said frantically, "to communicate with full-blooded humans yet."  
  
"They're such weaklings. But it's alright. All the better to aid our plans."  
  
"I've always followed my ancestor Tennyo's ideas, if not actions, my Lord. You know that I will stay faithful to you."  
  
"I always loved Eve best. It's a pity she had to lead what happened. She was a loyal one..."  
  
---  
  
"But still," Yuuhi pointed out, "there has been no known Tennyo deaths in the past four months or more."  
  
"That's a good point too," Suzumi agreed, "But _one_ Tennyo path lasts three months or more. If there are a lot in the same approximate area, they will hold each other open for more time."  
  
"How much more, though?" Aya asked dubiously.  
  
"Let's just say," Suzumi said carefully, "that if ten Tennyo died at the same time, in the same room, it would be as if you took the ten times three months, each span of three months overlapping by one month."  
  
"Huh?" Yuuhi sweat dropped.  
  
"You mean..." Hitomi said thoughtfully. She was always good at understanding figures like this, "Like this," she jotted out something on the back of an envelope.  
  
"(3-1)10," the paper read.  
  
"Yes, that's right," Suzumi said, "Why can't you be as smart as Kanzaki-san, eh, Yuuhi?"  
  
"..." Yuuhi replied, somewhat peeved.  
  
"Twenty months," Touya said in that emotionless way of his, albeit thoughtfully, "But where would ten Tennyos have died in the past..."  
  
"The C-Genoma who committed suicide!" Aya suddenly said, eyes wide with comprehension.  
  
"Precisely," Suzumi said.  
  
"Then we should set off as soon as possible!"  
  
"It's not that simple," Suzumi said, "Remember that we have enemies. They probably know about this too. We can't risk killing ourselves over something we can't get if we were _dead_."  
  
"She has a point," Yuuhi's father said gravely, "We must make the proper preparations. I will come with you."  
  
"Why?" Yuuhi asked incredulously.  
  
"I want to witness this 'historic' moment. Besides. Even Aya won't be enough to keep_ you_ out of trouble."  
  
"...." Yuuhi said flatly, "Thanks a lot, 'Tou-san."  
  
---  
  
"Here's the plan," Touya said to Aya, Touya, Hitomi, Yuuhi, and about twenty other men in the room, "We will probably be watched by our enemy, whoever that is. You all know how to use a gun, with the exception of Hitomi of course." Aya had begun learning how to shoot a moving target. Aya will go in, under the protection of Yuuhi ahead of her and I behind her, into the field that is the ruins of the original headquarters of the C-Project." It was more like a blackened piece of land. No one really rebuilt it quite yet. "And Hitomi will be with Aya. The men will cover us from all directions of the small field with a ratio of two men facing outside and one man facing in, for both defense and offense. Do you all understand?"  
  
The room echoed with confirmations.  
  
"We should be okay. Let's do this fast and get it over with," Aya concluded firmly.  
  
---  
  
Aya and Hitomi waited patiently in the dark car for the signal. The windows had shades, just in case, and the interior of the car was dark in the first place anyways.   
  
"I feel like some sort of assassin," Hitomi laughed, trying to break the dark mood, "You know, wearing dark clothes and being secretive..."  
  
She looked at Aya nervously. It's been a while since she had so much adventure.   
  
Aya smiled, but didn't say anything. She clearly radiated agitation.   
  
"It's okay Mikage-san," Hitomi said quietly, "It'll turn out okay. No matter what."  
  
"I hope so."  
  
---  
  
"My plan for you is to attack them when they retrieve the box," the deep voice commanded in a condescending tone. "Take it and capture the two women. Do what you wish with the others."  
  
"Hai," the middle aged man glanced at Felicia.  
  
"You must be careful, Ganjii," Felicia advised, "You must not fail. Remember. The future of man depends on this project."  
  
"And yet," the one now known as Ganjii couldn't resist that small temptation to retort, "you are not human. You are a Tennyo."  
  
"And I am one of the original Draconians," the dark figure replied in place of Felicia, "Fail me and you will die."  
  
"Hai," Ganjii bowed his head.   
  
---  
  
"Get ready to station yourselves," Touya said to the microphone attached to the earphones on his head. "Group leaders, give me a go or no."  
  
"We're all right," the leader of the north side replied.   
  
"Go ahead with the signal. We're ready," the south said.  
  
"We're okay," the west confirmed.  
  
"Hold on," the east said, "there's someone..."  
  
Silence.  
  
---  
  
Suzumi sighed, and rocked the baby. The baby looked up at her with large eyes unmovingly as if saying No Aogiri-san, I don't wanna go to sleep just yet, may I play some more, plleeeeaaassseee?   
  
"Go to sleep," she said.  
  
"Neh..." the baby giggled. That person holding her was very strange. She was pretty. Not as pretty as the woman who usually rocked her to sleep (even though, the baby thought, the man with red hair did that more). But pretty. She had really pretty eyes... What did they call her? Suzumi?  
  
"Su..." the baby struggled to say, "Su... su zi..." and gave up.  
  
Suzumi's eyes watered. If only... if only her baby had been born. She would've felt the same joy Aya felt now. She paid no attention to the baby when it spoke strange strings of syllables, and continued to try to sing it to sleep...  
  
---  
  
"We're ready," east said.  
  
"Okay. Wait for my signal," Touya replied.  
  
Aya breathed a sigh. Touya took her hand, "On my mark," he paused to make sure Yuuhi was ready, "positions."  
  
Yuuhi swung open the van's door, and pointed his gun out, "All clear," he said, stepping out.   
  
Aya followed with Hitomi close behind, and Touya followed behind, shutting the door.   
  
"Let's go," the group walked briskly into the semi-darkness until they faded into dark figures.   
  
---  
  
"They have people stationed around the area," Ganjii informed his mercenaries. "Attack ruthlessly, but only when I give the command. Remember: capture the women. Catch the two men with them if possible, but kill them if you can't. Take your positions."  
  
---  
  
"Over here," Yuuhi said quietly to those following him.   
  
"Here?" Aya asked, pointing at a circle of rubble.  
  
"This should be it."  
  
"Now... wait until sun-down," Touya instructed, "and you can say the prayer then."  
  
So the four, surrounded by their guards, waited patiently. 

* * *

**A Word To the Reader About This Chapter  
**Thanks for reading. I hate myself for making update range one chapter every two weeks, but I _do_ have a life, believe it or not (XD), and school's killing me. So the obvious thing to do is cut into fanfic writing time. Oh well. It's not as if anyone _reads_ this anyways. I have, as of this moment, 5 reviews for this fanfic on FFN. Three from the same person. Thanks for that. Like Shiniki-san said, I won't be like other authors who live for the reviews and threaten readers with "i wont continue dis if U dun review, dude." (all grammar and spelling mistakes intended here). I'm not like that. Not anymore anyways. But I _do_ want to say that it saddens me to get so few readers. I had quite a few on my site at first, but the hits kind of died after a while. And that's also part of why I'm moving this fanfic to the Ayashi section at FFN. I think part of the reason I get so few reviews is that there are so many (crappy) fanfics flooding FFN in the Escaflowne section (by those annoying crappy dub Esca lovers, really. But then, of course, it's not their fault that they're brainwashed by evil American people.) that the fanfics based (as much as possible, actually. I haven't seen it. I HAVE seen the movie subbed and dubbed, realized that the dubbing SUCKS, and watched the first ten eps subbed) on the original Tenkuu no Escaflowne (that's _Sky_ of Escaflowne, you damned illiterate people. I'm just kidding. The creators called it both that and Vision of Escaflowne. But I still think sky sounds better) are being completely ignored. As Ayashi is virtually brand-new territory as far as fanfiction, I feel that I have a better chance of voicing myself there. Anyhoo. Sorry that this chapter is so short...**  
  
Author's Random Ramblings:  
**Life has _not_ been good to me. Yes. Yet another reason why I don't write much. Life has been crappy. Well let me count off now.  
1) As most of you know, one of the main reasons my life sucks is Jonathon C. He passed away in February, and life _sucks_ without him to talk to, even if we weren't really a couple anymore anyways.  
2) My grades are suffering. They are caused by my depression, yes, but they result in making my depression worse, if you actually know what I'm talking about. I got my mid-quarter report card yesterday (Thursday). Ouch. My parents hate me.  
3) My social life has been crappy too. I haven't been doing much for my friends, and they have been wonderful about it. And I feel bad. I don't go out much anymore, unfortunately. But then of course, that's no reason for me not to write...  
4) And I am trying to find the goal of my life. I guess everyone goes through this stage. I firmly believe in God, and I love him and all. But I want to know why I'm here. Why God sent me here. My parents dedicated my life to him before I was born, and I want to know what God intends for me.  
5) And life sucks for that very reason. Life sucks. That's why.  
  
**Ramblings About the Process of Writing This Chapter...  
**This chapter took three weeks. I started it WAY before I published chapter three. And I took forever doing it. Sorry for the wait. This is becoming _really_ inconsistent, isn't it?**  
  
**


	5. five: the fight for a memory

- Amichan - kurisutarusakura@hotmail.com - http://www.geocities.com/thecrazyfangirl/ -  
  
Notes and copyright information are at the end.  
  
This chapter is for Edwin AND Margareth, whose birthdays are on March 25th, a.k.a., next Monday. Happy 15th. And yes, this is dedicated to Edwin only because I'm too lazy to buy him a real gift.  
  
the night falls  
  
and the stars fade  
  
as the epic begins  
  
and the story is told  
  
of how the two worlds  
  
shall come together  
  
one, undivided  
  
forever in peace  
  
of the two fated ones  
  
with faith and courage  
  
friends and allies  
  
and their destinies  
  
Hitomi, Aya, Touya, and Yuuhi find out more about the secret box and how to summon it, and plan to acquire somehow this magic. But it's really not that simple. The process will require perfect timing and defense, as the enemy is also planning their next move---to steal the box once Aya summons it.  
  
And here is how the battle for that lost memory in the box ensued...  
  
AYASHI NO KIJUTSU  
  
(Eerie Magic)  
  
Chapter Five: The Battle for a Memory  
  
The four had waited more than patiently for the coming of sundown. It was quite literally only a few moments, actually, but to them, it was about the equivalent of a million long years' wait, naturally. They stood close together in the semi-darkness nervously and waited for the sundown for about two minutes. No one really knew how the "say a prayer at sundown" was going to affect any real summoning, when one thought about it logically. But they had figured that it was better to stand in the path of the Tennyo, and wait for the exact moment of sundown from that point on the earth.  
  
And when sun finally sank into the distance with a tone of finality, no one really had the heart to admire how beautiful it really was. Aya whispered in a low, but firm voice (she was determined to carry this mission out, no matter how nervous or scared of the truth she was. For it was an important mission, albeit a simple one), her prayer to summon the magic at last.  
  
"Spirits of the past," she said, "please hear me. I now need your aid in this battle. I need to know what I am up against, and what I should do. Give me the box that contains the secrets of the past, so that my allies and I may learn of the past and seek guidance from my ancestors...."  
  
---  
  
"She's saying the prayer," the leader of the team whispered tonelessly into the microphone attached to his headphones.  
  
"Remember the order. Intercept them only when they have the box and are heading for their transportation," Ganjii said, over the phone line.  
  
"Hai," the man's face was expressionless.  
  
---  
  
"Van-sama," a middle-aged woman approached him respectfully, "May I," she looked to Van and the elderly Draconian standing besides him for permission, "have a word with you?"  
  
The elderly Draconian said to Van at this moment, "Van-sama, this is Rayin (A/N: Pronounced RAI-in, in one quick stroke), the fortune teller of our clan. She is young, as she is only at age thirty, but she is especially blessed in the sight. She may provide some useful information."  
  
"Very well," Van consented.  
  
---  
  
As if in response to Aya's prayer, a low breeze blew softly towards them. And a small box the size of a thumb appeared in thin air, surrounded by a faint blue aura. Aya stared at it for a moment, and reached out to hold it in her hands softly. It was like a dream, somehow, for it flared for a moment, as if recognizing her, and then the aura faded almost completely away, as the box seemed to consent and floated into her hands. Aya nodded to the others after a moment of uncertainty, and the four started walking quickly to the car. All this happened to Aya, but she neither felt the urgency or panic that one would normally feel in such an important situation. It was as if she was someone else watching. As if it was only a dream.  
  
---  
  
"She's got it," the man clad in black muttered, "I'm giving the order."  
  
---  
  
Hitomi slowed a little, struggling to hear. Was that a muffled yelp she just heard? She turned around for a second to confirm that tought. Sure enough, a body in black, faced down, lay near a bush.  
  
Who... she thought.  
  
"Touya," she said through her teeth strenuously, "something's wrong."  
  
"I know," Touya replied just as quietly as she had spoken, "just continue and ignore."  
  
"Okay," she quickened her steps to catch up.  
  
About forty yards later, however, they were intercepted by four swift men. While Touya and Yuuhi tackled two of them in quick (but precise) hand-to- hand combat, one of them grabbed Hitomi. The one man left proceeded to kick Aya deftly in the stomach. She dropped the small box on the ground, and at the same moment, Hitomi got loose of the grasp on her and dived for the box, followed by Aya and the two men the girls were against.  
  
However, Touya and Yuuhi had disposed of the two men they were fighting against by now, and they managed (even at their breathless state), with Aya's and Hitomi's help, to get rid of the remainder two as well. And when the four, with the small box, were running for the car again, no one on the enemy's side was even remotely close enough to intercept them.  
  
---  
  
"Yokatta!" Suzumi welcomed Aya, Yuuhi, Hitomi, and Touya back, "You all came back safe and sound! Did you manage to get the box?"  
  
"Yes," Aya placed the small box on the tatami-matted floor with a sense of quiet calm, the calm that she felt whenever she looked at the box, "we did."  
  
"Good," Yuuhi's father had appeared at the doorway noiselessly, "we can proceed to open it, then."  
  
"It's encased in some sort of moldable material," Hitomi noted.  
  
"It's pretty hard, that material," Yuuhi agreed, "But we could probably just peel it off with a knife or something."  
  
Aya nodded, "The material is probably there to protect the box itself."  
  
"Here," Touya said, pulling out a pocket knife, "cut it with this."  
  
"I'll do it," Hitomi volunteered. Touya silently handed the knife to her, handle first, and she proceeded to delicately cut through the thin material with careful precision, so that the knife would not hurt the box. In reality, the box wouldn't really have been hurt even if she had tried to slice it with a very sharp sword. It was obviously protected by magic.  
  
When all of the casing finally came off, everyone let out that breath they were holding, and Hitomi handed the box to Aya without a word, while Yuuhi's father collected the scraps of the material that Hitomi cut off into a plastic bag for observation later. Suzumi turned on a tape recorder (to record down important information). Aya took the box, and gingerly lifted the top of the dark wooden box off (the box was shaped from two parts, one smaller than the other [that being the top] to fit snugly over the bottom). It was a few seconds before anyone could see what was in it, because immediately, a blue light shone brightly in the room from the box. And when they tried to look at what was in it, all at the same time, the light shone again, creating an light image in the air. The image was one of a woman's.  
  
This woman had the trademark characteristics of a Tennyo. Her hair was that of a purplish blue, as her eyes were. Her face was gentle, her nose small, and her mouth was pressed together in a soft line. She was deathly pale, equally simple strap sandals. It was apparent, from what clues they were given from the myth itself and this woman, that she was from the time of Atlantis.  
  
"Greetings," she said softly, "I haven't much time, but I feel an obligation to speak to you, destined ones, of the past. I am a memory. The memory, in fact, of the first Tennyo. And I am to tell my story."  
  
---  
  
My name is Eve. The people who created me named me after the first woman. For, they said, I was the first real woman. I was created, yes, by human hands. My purpose is a slave. A sexual slave, mostly. I was created to be the wife of the Emperor of the Atlanteans. There were many, actually, before me. But all were tested over long periods of time by other men. I am the first perfect woman.  
  
My race was created by a powerful kingdom, Atlantis, whose people are accordingly called Atlanteans. This kingdom was headquartered in the center of the Earth at our time. I have slept for over ten thousand years here in this box. According to Atlantis calculations, the ruins of Atlantis would be near what is now your south pole, as the poles have shifted much over the years.  
  
I say that the headquarter of Atlantis was at the center of the Earth. But our continent was surrounded by others as well. Our continent was called the Central Continent. To the north, there was two great continents, connected by a narrow strip a land. That was called the Joint North Continent.  
  
To the east, there was a great continent of strange people with dark hair and pale skin, with small eyes and small stature. This great continent had many people, though not as many as the Central Continent. This continent was called the East Pagan Continent, for the people there did not believe that the Atlanteans were gods. But these people were the ones who had given us many different types of materials of all kinds---clothes, stones, and other things. This is why they received the gift of wisdom and warfare [A/N: That sort of makes sense, doesn't it? Asia is the continent that invented paper, gun powder, and many other things besides].  
  
To the west was a whole new world. There was a continent filled with dark- skinned people. This continent was where, Atlanteans said, all mankind's ancestors came from. This is why the Noir Continent [A/N: For those who did not know, noir means black or dark in Latin. No, I'm not being racist. I imagine that this is why the Atlanteans' mind frames would work] received the richest treasures from the Atlanteans. They received the magic of music [A/N: African people (that's African-American too) have an incredible sense of rhythm!].  
  
Further west was land almost unknown to us. It is connected, as the world is round, to the East Pagan Continent. It is not exactly a separate continent. Because of the different race that lived there, (for they were fair skinned, like Atlanteans), it was named a separate continent, the Continent Surrounded By Water [A/N: Fact from my geography book: Did you know that Europe is also called the Peninsulas of Peninsulas because it's one giant peninsula, but has many smaller peninsulas on it?]. This continent's peoples looked like Atlanteans, and were beautiful. That is why they received the gifts of art.  
  
These were the main land-masses, and there were others. They were given various gifts too, but none as great as these largest lands. My creators ruled over the world. They interacted regularly with these people, and their technologies were far greater than all others. They obeyed the Atlanteans because they feared the technology that Atlantis possessed. They did not realize for a long time that they were superior in numbers, and could have destroyed Atlantis easily with a little careful planning.  
  
But I suppose one must consider that Atlanteans installed many different machinery over the world. The most advanced and accurate being the world- wide web [A/N: No. That is not a pun or any joke. It's what came to mind when the plot first came up.] of posts where the Atlanteans viewed the stars and predicted the future. All of these posts are hidden as temples, churches, or various landmarks of the sort, mostly religious.  
  
These posts were placed strategically. All of them were marked with some sort of a straight line pointing north. For example, the Joint North Continents was divided into North and South.  
  
The South part of the continent had especially many technologies. This is where Atlanteans placed their most perfect direction marks---the stone spheres placed strategically to tell a direction from another.  
  
[A/N: Yes, these stones really exist. They're HUGE (about 3-4 feet tall each. That's big. This is 10 thousand years ago we're talking about. It's amazing that they can create SPHERES already. Perfect ones). These stones were placed yards, or even miles apart, to tell direction, with a set of three on each location. How do they tell location? Trigonometry. Study a bit of Geometry and it'd be quite obvious. Ya know, the whole right triangles and length thing. They did something with that or something. Ugh. History's confusing. So's Archaeology.]  
  
Here in this sub-continent [A/N: Being brainwashed by my Geography teacher, I used that word. Sub-continent means a landmass shaped like a continent, only smaller. In this case, a landmass that is shaped like a continent, but is not quite considered a continent. I know I know. Don't tell me. It's now South America, a separated continent from North. But this is 10000 years ago. Don't argue with me], there were many temples. For the civilizations here [A/N: For the South American history impaired, those are, to name a few, the Incas and the Mayans. I know. I'm strange. What can I do? My dad was a history major. It's in my blood] believed in the power of nature [A/N: That's mostly true in terms of South American ancient civilization religion and philosophy].  
  
The roads leading up to most of these temples point north, placing the temples directly at the north ends of roads [A/N: Again, mostly true. Only a few were actually at the north. I must remind you that this is not our "north," or north pole that we're talking about. It's their's. Which was, at the time, roughly around Hudson Bay in New York state.. Those who believe in this particular Atlantis theory call it the Hudson Pole Bay].  
  
And this is roughly the layout and the best technologies of Atlantis. These things were what made them proud. This is what made them feel that they deserved perfect women. And so they cast aside their normal women and created us to be the ultimate wealth. We were worth more than gold to the men there.  
  
Yes. That's the end of that chapter. At the end of this chapter, I must roughly point out that a) I don't believe in this Atlantis theory. In fact, I don't believe in Atlantis at all. I just think it's interesting, b) This theory is not mine. As I have pointed out in the first few chapters at the end notes, they come from the book The Atlantis Blueprint by C. Wilson and R. Flem-ath, if you want to read it. It's hundreds of pages of analyzing on general geography, culture, and historical facts that would prove their theory correct. It's boring, but I liked it. It was amusing even if I hated them for their theory on how Christianity rooted from Masonry, and c) Most of this probably doesn't make sense.  
  
It's confusing, I know. I sort of manipulated the theory a little, and this is what came of it. The next chapter will roughly be the end of the first arc of this fanfic. I don't know how long this fanfic will be, because what I have in mind as far as plot goes can go from 3 chapters as far as the next arc to maybe 10+. It all depends on what I decide to do with it. The next chapter will mostly be explaining on the past of Atlantis and Tennyo relationship and what Van is doing (ah, we see so little of him *sniffle*) and what will happen to him. Yes of course we must bring him into the story somehow. But Hitomi is the heroine, of the Escaflowne side of this fanfic, of course.  
  
After all is explained, the mystery (or whatever it is, as I suck at mystery as much as I suck at comedy), of course, will be no more. The rest of it, as you have read in the introduction of the first chapter (if you even remember), is how the union of the two planets and three peoples came about. Or something like that anyway. Most of this fanfic was planned, but a lot of it is also "anything goes."  
  
We'll see what happens. Damn. This chapter was long. Almost as long as the first chapter.  
  
A Word To the Reader About This Chapter  
  
Thanks again for reading. I can't thank you all enough for reading and reviewing. I give special thanks to Grrl N for reviewing on every chapter so far on fanfiction.net! What I would do without you! Thank you, everyone, for reading. This fanfic would be completely pointless without you, the reader. I'm sorry that the last few chapters have been dry, short, and boring, and I hope to improve as I go on. Please read on and comment. Authors can only improve so far without comments and find so many mistakes unless they were pointed out to us. Rayin's name came out from no where in the back of my mind. If another fanfic author had a character with that name (particularly a Zelda author--I've been reading a lot of those), it's probably stolen off his or hers. And I'm sorry for that. If you have a character with the name Rayin, please review or e-mail me and inform me. I'm really not sure if I came up with it myself or if someone else created it.  
  
Author's Random Ramblings:  
  
Ugh. Life is pathetic. And I know some of you are wondering what the fucking hell the dedication means. It's, as you can see, Edwin's birthday on Monday. I tried to get him a gift---I really did. I owe him that much. In fact, let's applaud Edwin for giving me what he gave me for Christmas--- Ayashi no Ceres, the complete TV series on CD-R. That's why this chapter is dedicated to him. Because I couldn't find a gift for him (and he has to live with getting money instead) and because I wouldn't have seen all of the series without him. This fanfic probably wouldn't exist without him. And he probably doesn't know that nor care. XD Margareth, however, deserves this dedication (Imaginary-Edwin-In-Amy's-Mind: And I don't? *anger anger*). She drew a beautiful picture of Akito Hayama from Kodomo no Omocha, dedicated to my original story (about my life), The Last Maple Leaf. Love you Margareth!  
  
Ramblings About the Process of Writing This Chapter...  
  
The first 7 kb of this chapter came pretty much easily. I had a bit of inspiration, although upon re-reading the draft, I found the section dry, boring, and unoriginal. Most of this fanfic has become sort of a rush job because of the pathetically busy life I lead and because of the lack of inspiration, for the most part. I'm glad that people like it, really. But as much as I'm proud of the fanfic itself, I'm not really proud of how the context is. I love it, in a general sense, but I don't like what I did with it. I could've done so much more...  
  
The rest of the chapter came rather well. I like it. It's long and it's boring and historical. Yum. Ugh. I'm brainwashed by evil creatures disguised in what they call "educators." 


	6. six: to tell the story

- Amichan - kurisutarusakura@hotmail.com - http://www.geocities.com/thecrazyfangirl/ -  
  
Notes and copyright information are at the end.  
  
_This chapter is for you, my readers, for being so wonderful and faithful. _

_the night falls  
and the stars fade  
as the epic begins  
and the story is told  
  
of how the two worlds  
shall come together  
one, undivided  
forever in peace  
  
of the two fated ones  
with faith and courage  
friends and allies  
and their destinies  
_

* * *

Aya fulfills the first part of the long-lost prophecy by acquiring successfully the secret box that is said to hold the secrets of the past. With Touya, Hitomi, Suzumi, Yuuhi, and Yuuhi's father, she opens the box to find the illusion of a Tennyo from the time of Atlantis itself! A memory created by her true self in the past, she is a memory whose purpose is to tell the "destined ones" of the mistakes the Atlanteans made in the past.   
  
And this is the story she told...  
  
AYASHI NO KIJUTSU  
(Eerie Magic)  
Chapter Six: To Tell the Story  
  
The Empire had existed for more than two hundred years at this time, and was stable and powerful. Even though there were continents that refused to admit that they were under Atlantean control, they were forced to pay tribute to the Main Continent yearly. The network of star-watching posts spread all over, at special places. They also served as marks for measuring distance, as they were all placed apart according to a measuring system. They lined up to be on the same latitude or longitude, and created a large network of lines to measure the earth by.   
  
The Atlantean was a proud race. They believed that they deserved the best of everything. After they built artistic and sturdy houses to live in and beautiful, breathtaking cities to flourish in, they began creating servants. Some were in the form of animals, but there were some in the shapes of young children.  
  
They were all, however artificial in material. None of them were of flesh and blood. After many years, the men there began craving women. Perfect women. So a group of advanced scientists began mixing different genes and bloods together, in hopes of creating perfect beings. They were playing around with nature. They were playing gods. And it destroyed them at the end.  
  
After years of trial and error, who they believed to be the most intelligent, beautiful, and loyal woman was born. I woke up one day on a stone table in the middle of a room in total darkness. And throughout the next few days, they filled my mind with information about the history of the Empire, how I was created, and my purpose.  
  
I was sent as a gift to the Emperor. He did not have a given name. None of the emperors did. They were called Prince when they were young, and Emperor when they inherited the throne.   
  
The Emperor was good to me, as was his wife, to most people's surprised. He loved me more than anything else in the world, but the Empress treated me like a sister. She had been, at the time, left alone by the Emperor for a while. He hadn't _touched_ her for years.   
  
I immediately became a favorite, and the Empress loved me for it. She loved the Emperor whole-heartedly, and she missed seeing a loving Emperor. And to her, I was the one who made him loving again. She was glad that he was happy, even if she wasn't the one who made him happy.  
  
I was like a sister to her, she said. I never needed anything, because all I needed was provided by her. I never wanted anything either, because I had everything a girl could ever want. She was the most wonderful person ever. She neither hated me for being a favorite.  
  
After being a title-less slave for three years, the Emperor began gradually moving my station from a slave to royalty. I was at first a concubine (which was really the same as the sexual slave I started out as, just with a fancier title), then a princess, and then Second Empress.  
  
The First Empress had wanted to give up her station for me, but she didn't at the end. The Emperor felt that the people would have been angry at him.   
  
During the first seven years of my time with the Emperor, the scientists who created me began creating other women of my race. They called us the Heavenly Maidens. For, they said, we were truly from heaven itself.  
  
---  
  
"King Van," Rayin, the fortune teller, fell to her knees before him.  
  
"If there is something you want, Rayin," Van remarked patiently, "just say so."  
  
"I am not in need or want of anything," Rayin replied. "You, my lord, has provided us with everything we could ever need or want. The reason I kneel to you, Van-sama, is that I have seen a vision. It is a great one, bestowed on me, even though I am undeserving."  
  
"What is this vision, then?" Van allowed himself a small sigh. He never particularly liked visions. Every time _Hitomi_ had a vision, something, oh, say, _unpleasant_, happened.  
  
"I saw..." Rayin trailed off here.   
  
Van waited patiently.  
  
"Perhaps," Rayin murmured to herself slowly, "I could _show _it to you. I think I can, any how. It might be hard, as my magic is a weak one. But this is important..."  
  
"All right then," Van replied, "If you think you should, go ahead."  
  
"I must first lay a spell," and with that, Rayin began to draw out tools and ingredients for the proper image spell.  
  
---  
  
After many years, there was a great dissatisfaction among the slaves. Their masters gave them no mercy and no rest, and they wanted freedom. The Atlanteans had become prideful, and no longer loved the Heavenly Maidens. They treated the slaves as what they were called. Sexual slaves, and nothing more. Most were born with a mild nature, and withstood the emotional pains for many years. After all, they were designed to respect and be loyal to their masters.  
  
One particularly bitter slave, Maell, grew to hate her master. She requested my audience, and I gave her permission to talk to me in my quarters at the central palace. I like to hear from my peers about what life is like outside the palace. The Emperor still loved me as a person, and often took me to beautiful places. But I always liked to hear about life in the common cities from the mouths of other Heavenly Maidens.   
  
Maell told me about how much her master beats her for not obeying him and not bedding him every night he requires her to, and showed me scars as proof. She told me how he was _always_ sexually dissatisfied, and how she wished she had the freedom to choose whom she wanted to bed, instead of being a sexual slave. She wanted to feel the love, she said, that I felt for the Emperor. She wanted to be treated like a human being.  
  
And I agreed. We have feelings too, even if we were created by human beings. I freed her with what power I have. The Emperor always lets me go about and do whatever I wish, because I never really find much reason to manipulate my power. So I freed her, and took her in as a maid. And she was happy, it seemed, under my other maids' care.  
  
But one day, her master, Rokul, came to my husband, and said to him, "Your slave has taken my slave from me. A slave should not be able to free her peers. Where has your discipline go, Emperor? Where has your grand power gone? Even a slave of yours is freeing another slave in the country. Is that right?"  
  
And so, due to this speech of Rokul's, the Emperor was forced to give Maell back to him. For if he did not, he would be called weak, and such things are not good for the Emperor. Before she went back to her master, she swore she would kill him one day, and destroy the rest of the kingdom that has brought her life and pain.  
  
Two more years passed, and I bore a child at last. The child, being the Emperor's first, as his first wife never bore a child for him, was named the Prince. But he, unlike his father and I, was a cruel child. As the only child and heir of the Emperor, the Prince was spoilt, and got everything he wished.  
  
The prince eventually began to help rule the kingdom, at his sixteenth birthday. The East Pagan Continent was given to him to rule. And he luxuriated in the power that was given to him. The Prince owned many Heavenly Maidens, although his father only had me. The Emperor said that I was enough for him. But the Prince was greedy, and bought many slaves. Throughout all this, I never grew old, for I am a Heavenly Maiden.  
  
Among the slaves he bought was Maell. Maell's master, Rokul, was given a handsome price for Maell, so he willingly gave her up. Maell, through all this, did not complain. She was, I suppose, still waiting for her chance to destroy her former master and the rest of the kingdom, if she could ever manage it. I never heard from her again until after the war began.   
  
[A/N: At this point in writing, I must say that I was listening to Ashes Faded Away, a background song from Ayashi no Ceres and Into Gaia from the Escaflowne movie. So if I were you, and I had the pretty songs, I'd listen to them right about now. Also, yes, Maell is *much* older than The Prince, but remember, her physical state is still at about twenty, so she's not _that_ much old than him in body.]  
  
Nothing important happened in the Central Continent for the next twenty years. There was one exception that was important to _me_. The First Empress died seven years after the Prince was given his continent to rule. This was the only great thing that happened, and the Kingdom mourned. But more important were the outbreaks from mobs and such in the East Pagan Continent, for my son was cruel and heartless, and did not care for his people. There was weeping everywhere, and this was the first stage of the war.   
  
The Heavenly Maiden did not really involve themselves in this stage of the war, and all was peaceful in the Central Continent. The war began four years after the Prince began to rule his continent. It continued until after the Empress died, and even after the Emperor's death.   
  
The Emperor died before my own eyes of an illness no one could cure at age seventy-five. I was about fifty years old then. Our son, the Prince, came into rule. He died four years after the war began. The new Emperor was twenty-four.  
  
[More Author's Notes: And here, I was listening to Black Escaflowne from the Escaflowne movie. Very dramatic song.]  
  
The Kingdom wept for the Emperor's death, and wailed at the beginning of my son's rule. I became the queen mother, and did not know at all of my son's cruelty until a very long time later. My son was always good and gentle to me to gain my favor, for now I held great power over many slaves as well, and it would not do for the Heavenly Maiden to rebel, for each was given basic powers to protect herself.  
  
The rebels continued fighting for many years. On the twenty-first year of my son's rule, the East Pagan Continent rebelled. It was a great continent of many people, and this was when I found out about my son's true nature. A maid I had could not stand the cruelty anymore, and kneeled to me, begging that I do something to end the sufferings of the slaves. And this maid, Oruue, was the one to tell me that the new rebels from the east was led by a Heavenly Maiden and her companions. That Heavenly Maiden was Maell. 

* * *

**A Word To the Reader About This Chapter  
  
**Thanks for reading. This chapter's, as you can see, all about the past. Yes, I said that this chapter would end it nice and evenly, but it went on for much too long, and I had to cut the story here. The next chapter will hopefully end the first arc o.0. Yes, all the names in here are just random syllables strung together. And yes, the war will last for a total of about a little past half a century, maybe. Those poor people. Poor Eve! Also, I might need a beta reader sometime in the near future. If anyone's interested, tell me so. And my goodness. That was a SHORT chapter!**  
  
Author's Random Ramblings  
  
**Ugh. Life has been just as pathetic as before. To add to it, I'm bored. It's a stupid time to be bored. There are two more weeks until the third quarter of the school year ends. So busy. But still. I'm so bored that I was arguing with Edwin about what the definitive Seven Holy Names of God were. We got as far as, I think, Jehovah, God, and that's about all the correct ones in my opinion (other ones included the Father, which was more of a general term, IMHO [in my humble opinion, that means, if you didn't know. People keep asking me about it. It's annoying]). I think the other five are Prince of Peace, Immanuel, Everlasting Father, Alpha/Omega (I'm not quite sure about this one), Messiah (again, not sure). Possibilities? I don't know. I'm not that familiar with the Bible anymore. *shrug* If I was still 9, I'd know. My God. I had no life then. **  
**  
**Ramblings About the Process of Writing This Chapter...  
  
**Ugh. That was long and painful. This chapter and the next were composed of something that's been swimming around in my head since late December/early January or so, and just _begged_ to be let out of the cage. These two chapters are basically the entire basis of this story. But this chapter took a few weeks to write. I've been busy with school, what with scheduling next year's classes and whatnot. And I feel _dreadful_, half-hoping that my friends would not make it into Honors classes, just because I didn't. It feels horrible, seeing those people closest to me slowly drift away. And I love every one of my friends so much. And it hurts me when it seems like they don't care. Some have shown hints of sorrow at being separated from me, but others don't seem to care. And that hurts. Because I love them all. *sigh* I'll now shut up.**  
**


	7. seven: make a decision

- Amichan - kurisutarusakura@hotmail.com - http://www.geocities.com/thecrazyfangirl/ -   
  
Notes and copyright information are at the end.  
  
_This chapter is just for Himeka, Duo-kun, Peter, Enishi, Xyque, SunSenshi, Sana-Hayama, and all those wonderful people I met online, mostly on the AX message board, really =D _

_ the night falls  
and the stars fade  
as the epic begins  
and the story is told  
  
of how the two worlds  
shall come together  
one, undivided  
forever in peace  
  
of the two fated ones  
with faith and courage  
friends and allies  
and their destinies  
_

* * *

The war rages on in Atlantis, and even Heavenly Maidens, the goddess-like slaves created as concubines for nobility, rebelled. Torn between her people and her son, she must make a decision quickly that will affect the future of humanity.  
  
And this is how she came to her decision...  
  
AYASHI NO KIJUTSU  
(Eerie Magic)  
Chapter Seven: Make a Decision  
  
My maid came to me the night of that attack from the eastern lands. She, along with other heavenly maidens in my service, wept and begged me to escape and join the growing numbers of rebels. I would not be spared when the Emperor decides to wipe out all the slaves in the area, even if I was his mother. He was that cruel, they told me.   
  
I promised my husband I would take care of my child and protect this land as its queen mother forever after he died. I knew I must make a decision quickly. This decision might change the future. Not wanting to make any mistakes, I did nothing for the time being.  
  
---  
  
"You must be prepared to go to a new land soon, Van-sama. You are destined to assist the Seeress in her quest to end a fight. I do not clearly see what war she is fighting, but you are needed near her," Rayin told Van solemnly, "You will be a representative of this world. You should set off as soon as possible. Wish, my King, with your whole heart, and you will be near her. This is the image of the world you will be going to..." and Van was drawn into a vision of the Mystic Moon, deep in thought.  
  
---  
  
When Maell's rebels finally reached, by ship, the Central Continent, she sent a message with a girl to the Empress. The girl couldn't have been more than twelve years of age. But she approached the Empress with so much maturity. She seemed very loyal to Maell. 

"From Maell, leader of the Heavenly Maiden rebellions, to Eve, Empress Mother of the Empire and the first Heavenly Maiden," the young girl recited dutifully, "I send word to you now, my Empress. Although I have rebelled against the Emperor, you will always be my Empress. I will not forget your kindness towards me when I was still at the Central Continent. I will not disclose my plan to you, for, although I trust my messenger, Naville, there is to much at risk."  
  
"I send my messenger to you to let you know that I would never wish to harm you. You did me endless care by showing me, in that wordless kind way of yours, that there is always hope. I plea to you to join our numbers now. I do not ask you to fight with your power on our behalf, since this _is_ your Empire, but I ask you to join our numbers and go into hiding to avoid your son's wrath. Once we attack, your son will not spare any Heavenly Maiden in the area. And even if he spared you, my Empress, you would be hated by many since you are one of us."  
  
"I know that this war must bring much grief to you, and I am sorry for that. But I am determined to play out my part in this battle for humanity and justice. You, of all people, my beloved Empress, should know that we deserve every bit as much respect as the humans and nobility [A/N: Nobility is also those with wings, later to be called the Draconian], even if we were created."  
  
"I must add that, if you choose to decline this invitation to join us, I know that you may still, at any time during the war after we attack change your mind. If you should choose to do so, I will do my best to help you and search you out among the cursed humans, and try to find you and accommodate you with a shelter. But I do not think I can manage that very well if you should decide to join us after we attack."   
  
"I must go now. Take this girl, Naville, with you, and she will protect you if you should decide to come to us. If not, she will stay by your side and serve you willingly. If that be the case, do not send her back to give me a message. Send another servant. It is not safe to have one girl travel so much without some sort of power backing her. She had volunteered for this position. Lastly, I would like to tell you that you will be on my mind. May the goddesses in heaven, if there be any, bless you and keep you safe."  
  
"And that is all," Naville bowed/curtsied in that traditional way of servants.   
  
[A/N: This is done by doing a half bow and then curtseying very low, and then they stay there until they are allowed to rise up again by whoever they're bowing to. Yes, that's exhausting and painful. Depending on the rank of the female servant, she will have a different dress. There are those with simple white that flow down, and those are the lower ranking servants who do work like cleaning and arranging things. These girls hold their hands and arms out from their side slightly when curtseying, and hold their thumb and index finger together as if pinching at something. There are also those who have dresses full pale colored skirts. They do work like handling and making their mistress's, or in this case the Empress Mother's, clothing items. They hold their full skirts when curtseying the way people did in our world when they still wore skirts like that. There are, at last, those who do work like dressing nobility, being assistants in the private and public baths, and doing the women's hairstyles. They dress according to the work they do for convenience, and most of them just bend their knees slightly in the presence of a mistress to show respect, depending on rank. But some are favored by the more gentle mistresses, and don't usually show much formal respect actions like curtseying. A lot of this traditional typed thing were inspired by my watching too much ancient Chinese drama about a famous Emperor in the Qin dynasty or something like it, and now I'm rambling again. And I will not stop with the long and boring explanation of bowing culture and get on with the story.]   
  
"Please," Eve replied, holding the small girl by the shoulders and pulling her back up, also in an embrace, "rise. I thank you for coming through all the troubles and trauma of this war to give this message to me. Return to your mistress, my dear. It's far too dangerous for you to stay here with me alone. More dangerous, I think, than traveling back." 

"Please mistress," Naville abandoned the thought of a bow and fell to her knees before Eve, "I cannot. I had waited for a moment like this all my life. A moment to help the good of my people. This is that moment, my Empress. Helping you in this horrid place is the moment I've been waiting for. Please do not make me leave."  
  
Eve sighed, "What if I said I wanted to stay here by my son?"  
  
Naville looked up in surprise for a moment, then returned sober again, "I would stay with you, Mistress."  
  
Eve looked into Neville's eyes, and said, slowly, "Mari." A maid came forward hurriedly and bowed.  
  
"Go find the lady by the name of Maell," Eve continued, while Mari stared at the floor, "And give her this message: Maell, I am relieved by your invitation. And I will come as soon as I can finish taking care of some of my business. I wish you well, and I will see you soon. I am keeping Naville here with me, and I shall now send Mari to give you my message. May you be blessed by goddesses in heaven as well, Maell."  
  
Mari bowed, "Goddesses bless, Empress."   
  
---  
  
Van bowed before the priest, while the priest recited a protection chant, "May the gods in heaven bless you. May the dragon keep you. May you stay safe in body and in spirit. And may you have success on this journey."   
  
Van bowed his head, and stood up. Turning around and facing the crowd, he began his speech.  
  
"My fellow Fanelians," he began. "This is a difficult time for us. I have seen a vision of the Mystic Moon." He paused, listening to the murmur of the crowd, "And," he continued over the noise, as it gradually quieted down, "I will be traveling _alone_ to the Mystic Moon on a special mission. I will aid the Seeress, who has now left us to that place, in her journey against forces from ancient times. She will bring together two races on the Mystic Moon, and I fear that the Draconian race, the one that has been hated for so long---my people---might be involved as well Therefore, I will follow the Seeress in order to find out the truth about the past. May the spirits keep you and hold you while I am gone, and I assure you I will return."  
  
The crowd, numbering tens of thousands, kneeled before him, "May you return safely," they shouted back in response.  
  
---  
  
"Girls," I told my maids , "We are able to embark on a perilous journey. We will be going to find Maell to join her numbers."  
  
The room went into an uproar, and everyone was enthusiastic. I continued, "We will start the process tomorrow. You must all go under an oath if you wish to come with us. You will vow that you will keep this as a secret, and never speak of it, even if only those in our numbers around us were with you. For the walls have ears, too. My son's spies are almost everywhere. We only have one chance at this, and we must do this correctly. What do you all say?"  
  
"We'll come with you," they kneeled to the floor and replied, "And we vow to keep this a secret."  
  
---  
  
Stepping out of the "holy" water from his cleansing, Van put on the clothes that his tailors had fashioned according to the male clothing from Rayin's vision of the Mystic Moon. They looked odd, and they were uncomfortable too. He looked out to the moon.  
  
"I'm coming, Hitomi."  
  
---  
  
The twenty or so maids who knew of all this that I trusted were sent out one by one discreetly. Almost two weeks later, they were all spread out through the city. Naville had drawn a map of where Maell's forces were stationed. Maell herself was north of the city, right at the gate. Once the East Pagan forces surround the city walls, she will attack the gate, and there will be no way out for the Atlanteans.   
  
Those in my group would hide out in the city. We would meet one month after the first group was dispatched by the north gate, late at night, and we would kill those in the guarding stations and move out secretly and meet Maell's people about half a mile off the city wall. If there were some of us who could not make it all the way to that point, those who missed the date would discreetly move out alone and go in any direction off the wall until they met someone from Maell's army.  
  
After I sent out everyone but Naville but myself, I prepared to leave the palace as well. But everything would not go so smoothly. On the very day that I was to leave, my son the Emperor came to me and said, "Mother, I have come to see you. You must move into my quarters with me. You are in danger. Many hate you, and I promised Father, bless him, that I would protect you. Move in within three days, Mother, and I will do my best to save you. You do not need your servants, for they are all of the hated race. Leave them be, mother. I will keep you safe."  
  
He said he would keep me safe, but I could not live with anyone so cruel. I made up my mind already, and I continued to get ready to leave the palace that very night. My son, however, was a clever man. He noted that all but one of my servants were gone, and he inquired into it.  
  
"My son," I replied, "I was your father's wife for decades and decades. I am not unintelligent. I sent away all my servants, for they were Heavenly Maiden like myself. And they would be able to hide better outside the palace. Naville, however, is my most beloved maid. I could not bear to make her leave me. Oh, my son, Emperor, please, have mercy on your old mother. Grant my wish, my son. Let Naville stay with me when I move in with you in those three days."  
  
My son was silent for a while, as if he was pondering whether my words were true or not. Then, he nodded, "All right, Mother. This servant, and this servant only."  
  
"Thank you," I kneeled down to him so that he would cast away any further doubts.   
  
"Hmph," he sniffed delicately, and strode off.  
  
That night, Naville and I carried what we could, and rode into the city on a mule together. Our heads were covered, so that no one would know we were heavenly maiden. It was two nights before the night we were to meet with the others, and we looked about as much as we could in hiding, and survived. But we barely survived.  
  
For on the second night, we were attacked by some men. Naville was quick to react, and dealt with them accordingly. She spoke sweetly at first to them to catch them off their guard, and then kissed the leader, poison in her mouth. The leader soon toppled over to the ground, and we ran off while the other men were rushing to see what was wrong with their leader.   
  
We got past the guards easily the night after that, along with almost all of our numbers. Three were stoned by mobs because they were revealed as the hated race.   
  
The rest of us reached Maell safely, although one hadn't been able to get to us in time and went off to the east until she reached Maell's people. Even though we reached Maell, we found later that we were being followed by a squad of guards who saw us and saw that we were escaping. They followed us until they realized that they would not be able to capture us when there were so many of Maell's people against theirs. They soon gave up and went back into the city to report.  
  
At this time, the Central City was the only city left on the Central Continent. The city was in an uproar over the war, and many feared that their lives would be lost. And they were right. While the city panicked and tried to find a way out of this battle, Maell waited patiently for a few days for the Atlanteans' hearts to be troubled.   
  
Maell gave her attack two days later. The city fell, but most of her force had died too. We rescued many heavenly maiden from the ruins. Maell knew that many of the nobles escaped, but there was nothing we could do about that. We did what we could, and the once-magnificent Empire had fallen at last.  
  
Here I record this message so that all may hear. Do not make the same mistake again. Many have suffered. And there must be no suffering again.  
  
The most amazing thing about this war, as I found out later on, was that the Atlanteans had seen this war coming. Their fortune tellers stationed all over the temples in the world had put together bits and pieces of clues that indicated an attack from within their own people. And they were right. But they were too proud to admit that this might actually harm them. And it resulted in their end...  
  
---  
  
Eve paused, "And that is the end of my story. Please. Learn my mistake. I must go now, and I wish you well." And the image disappeared.   
  
Aya sighed, "That's so sad. What do we do _now_?"  
  
"I think," Hitomi replied thoughtfully, "Eve would want us to unite the three races. The Draconian--the nobles in her story who had wings---, the Tennyo, and the humans."  
  
"That's true," Suzumi replied, "I think there should be no more misunderstandings and fighting. It would be better if all three races were kept in peace."  
  
"And I agree with that," a beautiful voice of a woman replied. Those present in the room gasped at her voice.  
  
A woman with markings on her body and odd markings/clothes that flowed to the ground was behind them all. Yes. Ceres had come back.  
  
"Why---" Yuuhi uttered. 

"Hello Yuuhi," Ceres smiled a bit at Yuuhi. "I see," she continued dryly, "that you've found the first Tennyo's memories."  
  
"How did you..." Aya began.  
  
"I have my mana now, remember," Ceres replied. "So I can come and go as I please with a body of my own."  
  
"Um, oh," Aya replied uncertainly.  
  
"Is that..." Hitomi kind of sweat dropped.  
  
"Hitomi," Ceres half-floated towards Hitomi and held her face in her palms, "I have so wanted to meet you ever since I heard about your accomplishment in the other world. It must be such an honor to do something so great even when you didn't know you had Tennyo blood in you."  
  
"T-thank you," Hitomi replied modestly. "It wasn't all me, really. I just helped. The men fought the war."  
  
"You're wrong," Ceres told her, "You were as much a part of the battles as the men were," and she left Hitomi to ponder that. "You must all wonder why I am here," she said to everyone in the room, "and I shall tell you now."  
  
"I have been given an assignment from heaven itself," Ceres began. "And it involves the uniting of the two worlds and the three peoples. Eve," she told them with respect for the name she was saying, "wanted there to be peace. And I am to assist you through _your_ assignment. You will all help in uniting everything." 

* * *

**A Word To the Reader About This Chapter  
  
** Yes! I'm finally done with this chapter! This is the end of the first arc. It pretty much ends the mystery. Not very mysterious, it wasn't, you say? Well, I suck at mysteries. Bah. Let's see what'll happen with the second arc. I still want votes on whether to make a third arc/sequel or not, since the plot I planned originally for this story ends at the end of the second arc. But then, I now have these wild ideas swimming around in my head for a third arc. The conflict is, I still have a few other stories to finish, including, for those of you who actually read my other fanfics, STAR (Cardcaptor Sakura), Seeress (rewrite of my old Escaflowne fanfic, Seeress ^^), Glittering Past (Autobiography), and various other little things. So we'll see... This is actually the only active fanfic of mine XD. I feel that some of this chapter is not really well-written, but, I don't know. It's been a difficult time for me. And crap. There's beginning to be sap here. Damn damn damn. And I just realized what an ecchi/bordering on hentai story this would be if it was visual.   
**  
** Also, I still need that beta reader. Anyone?**   
  
Author's Random Ramblings  
  
** Life has been so confusing this year. And now it's more confusing than ever. I found out some odd things about a few people involving me. And during the process of this chapter, I was asked to, accepted, and went to Prom 2002 of our school. Gossip has also been flying around in the air. Many about a guy friend and me. Screw gossip. It's killing a perfectly good friendship. And it's annoying me like hell. My progress report card will be coming home next week, but my mom will be in Hong Kong. For the first time, she'll be going on an "official" business trip to advertise my father's new book.   
**  
** Anyways. The next planned release for a chapter of my fanfic will be another fanfic. It's the first chapter of a Final Fantasy X fanfic. The name isn't determined yet, but it'll either be called "Pyrefly" or "War of the Pyreflies." I'm leaning towards Pyrefly. But I'd like your input on which one sounds more grabbing. ^^ Thankies**   
**   
**Ramblings About the Process of Writing This Chapter...  
  
** Eek. Even more long and painful than the last chapter. I'm sorry this took so long, but it's really been a while since the last chapter. The only reason I could give is that 1. I had no inspiration, and 2. Life has been _hectic_. I'm *so* tired from everything that's going on in my life. I'm failing Geometry, getting a D in P.E., and I have a C in Global Studies. Sickening. Asides from that school crap, my social life has been extremely mixed up too. Joanna...  
**  
** Eek. I better not talk about that. -_- Aiya... I wish some of my friends from school could understand what I'm going through! Life is SO confusing. People (especially close school friends) keep asking for the third chapter of Glittering Past. I began working on it about a week ago, but I'm not even 1/5 of the way through. Life has been hectic and I don't remember much clearly, and now I depend on my saved conversations with my friends and my journal to write it. But I'm just going off-topic again so I'll shut up now. **   
  
** And, oh, by the way. Rayin isn't the same Rayin as the one in my Seeress: A Rewrite, and Maell isn't the same as the Maell from Pyrefly. They share same names, but that's about it. Some personality traits that might seem alike, but they're different people! **   
**


	8. updates again 125

Oh look! Not only is the new arc up at http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=1183773, the final edit novel version of the original Ayashi no Kijutsu is also being uploaded in pieces to replace the old chapters here. To view the whole thing (that will be uploaded later) that's already up at the official site, please visit http://pon-pon.net/amy/kijutsu/. If you want to wait for the final edit to get out here, keep a lookout for it on FFnet!  
  
~Amichan 


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